I am re-writing this post because I feel that my original gave Mr. Ahbez an unbelievably short shrift. This is a beautiful and enduring record from an utterly fascinating man.
Eden Ahbez is best "known" for the song "Nature Boy", made famous, of course, by Nat King Cole. When Cole-- who had by then started playing the song from sheet music enigmatically passed off to Cole's manager by Ahbez-- decided to record it, he first needed to find the songwriter. Ahbez was ultimately tracked down, found living under the Hollywood sign. He was a Nature Boy, a Wandervogel-influenced, proto-hippie, beard-wearing, vegetarian, outdoor-commune group. He claimed to live on three dollars a day.
With the exposure and money from "Nature Boy" (which went to No. 1 in 1948), Ahbez became an unlikely minor celebrity and enjoyed a fair degree of success, and an interesting little career as a songwriter (which you can read more about here, at the excellent Eden's Island blog, which has a lot of wonderful info).
In 1960, he put out his one and only solo full-length LP, Eden's Island. A major commercial failure, often accused of kitsch, it is, to my mind, one of the great iconoclastic masterpieces of Exotica-- and one of my favorite albums.
From the aforementioned blog: "Eden’s Island seemed to be the grandiose summation of ahbez’s philosophic idealism, couched in a beachcomber context of Martin Denny-esque arrangements, with ahbez himself reciting poems about his own mystical hideaway."
It's so amazing, really. The arrangements are phenomenal. The Denny comparison is spot-on--though Arthur Lyman would likely be more apt-- but it's also a bit weirder than those guys. Moments of spare minimalism, weird vocal numbers, amazing experimental dashes (such as using water and wood creaking as a rhythmic element in "The Old Boat")... this reminds me of another bearded one: Moondog.
In 1960, he put out his one and only solo full-length LP, Eden's Island. A major commercial failure, often accused of kitsch, it is, to my mind, one of the great iconoclastic masterpieces of Exotica-- and one of my favorite albums.
From the aforementioned blog: "Eden’s Island seemed to be the grandiose summation of ahbez’s philosophic idealism, couched in a beachcomber context of Martin Denny-esque arrangements, with ahbez himself reciting poems about his own mystical hideaway."
It's so amazing, really. The arrangements are phenomenal. The Denny comparison is spot-on--though Arthur Lyman would likely be more apt-- but it's also a bit weirder than those guys. Moments of spare minimalism, weird vocal numbers, amazing experimental dashes (such as using water and wood creaking as a rhythmic element in "The Old Boat")... this reminds me of another bearded one: Moondog.
I would love to go on and on about how good this record is, but many others before me have done a better and more thorough job of giving this record its due. It's a masterpiece. It's completely bizarre, and deeply felt. You need to hear it, if you haven't. If nothing else, the song "Banana Boy" will brighten your life infinitely.
Eden with Brian Wilson during the Smile sessions
Here's a link to Eden's wiki. Interesting. Be sure to check out the Eden's Island blog, though.EDEN'S ISLAND: The Music of An Enchanted Isle
5 comments:
I love this. Anyone who hasn't heard it must give it a go.
David
Thanks, David. This ain't getting a lot of downloads, maybe your recommendation will sway a few skeptical souls.
I hope I didn't overdo it with the write-up; this really is a great little record.
It's unfortunate that this record has been judged so harshly by 'serious' listeners.
Definitely some enchantment in these grooves. Thanks for the post and the thoughtful write-up.
-James
I've been looking for this a while.
I'm glad to find it here, and the link still works after all this time.
Recently, I heard a sample of this LP and 'must' hear more before I decide to buy a copy.
Given the biased reviews out there, it was a pleasant surprise at how good the LP is, and Abhaz' poetry has a dream-like quality to it.
I'd highly recommend this to anyone who's never given it a try. You'll thank me later. You're welcome!
It's an interesting album, though it sometimes sounds a bit naive... like a time bubble. Still it has a good flow and takes you away into an exotic, sunny seaside world. Eden obviously liked to live a free life outdoors and was happy with it, though later tragedies (his wife died early, his only son drowned when he was 22) perhaps left him as a lonely, old man.
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